Recently one of Mara’s neighborhood brokers gave me a tour of Midtown East. I must tell you I had no idea…... I recommend that anyone who is not familiar with that neighborhood take the time to acquaint themselves with what it offers.

Made up of fuzzy- lined boundaries consisting of Turtle Bay, Beekman Place, and Sutton Place/Sutton Place South,  you find a mix of old world charm, magnificent architecture, and modern convenience. I was surprised by the sense of community I felt with the neighborhood amenities such as the dog runs, the butcher, the fish-monger, the specialty cheese shop and the florist… and throw in a taste of several five-star restaurants just to remind you that you are in the middle of Manhattan.

A stone’s throw away is Grand Central, the Plaza, and east side subways, as well as cross- town subways and buses and trains to Queens. It is probably one of the most accessible places in Manhattan. You can easily walk to anything or easily grab a train to get you practically anywhere you could possibly want to go. Although many of the residents do use private cars because of the parking accommodations and easy access to the 59th Street bridge (still no toll as we speak).

The apartments range from the affordable to the untouchable. There are  apartment buildings where nothing has come up for generations and some where only 20 people in the world might qualify to get in mixed with rentals that are available for students or young up- and- comers. Some of the most obvious amenities have to do with the river. A river view or even a garden or park on or near the river is a very desirable amenity for some of the best apartments. The tree- lined areas near the river give one a taste of suburbia even though much of the garden areas are privately owned by exclusive private buildings.  Even the dog runs have river views!

I was particularly intrigued by the ‘maisonettes’, ‘small houses’, something I wasn’t familiar with in suburbia. A very non -descript door on the ground floor of some of these larger buildings leads to private     ‘maisonnettes’. I could only imagine what was behind those doors. Did they have gardens, pools, sanctuary? I am sure that the outer doors are an understated entry into an urban Shangrila.

Midtown East, a great place to live… an affordable, quaint, historic, nice community… and very well located to anything in Manhattan.

Thank you, Kathy, for showing me around!

JR